Over From the Start
by Lady Knight of VT
Summary: The title comes from Kenny Chesney's "You Had Me From Hello." It's part of the chorus. Not sure exactly where this plot is going, but the idea wouldn't go away, so I'm giving it a shot. Rating will probably change later. Is zutara
1. Chapter 1: Memory

**Author's Note:** _This is my first fanfic—well, the first that I've had the guts to actually put on here. And when I started writing this, I decided that if no one liked it, I was not going to continue it. I mean, really, what's the point in writing something if no one wants to read it? My time would be better spent writing stories that people DO wanna read. Also, I am sorta new to Avatar, so I'm sure I will be making mistakes. Please yell at me if I do. And I know that Zutara really isn't possible, but I've only seen the first and second books, so humor me. My idea for the title came from "You Had Me From Hello" by Kenny Chesney, and I found a flair on facebook that said "You had me at I'll save you from the pirates." And I'm a hopeless romantic, so I just took it from there. I only have a vague idea of where this is going, but I do know that I'm going to do my best to keep the characters' personalities. I really hate those stories that you read and think "My God she would never act like that!"_

_There's no specific time setting for this, but it is definitely before the Comet. And probably also before the time Katara and Zuko are in the caves under Ba Sing Se. and to be honest, Toph probably shouldn't be in my story, but I really like her and I'm the author so I'm putting her in._

**Disclaimer:** **I do **_**not**_** own Avatar or any of the characters. In my own little world, however, I do own them. In that world I also own Twilight and Harry Potter. But I'll keep things in this world.**

**Memory**

With eyes narrowed in cold fury, Katara spun on her heel and stalked back to the young man who was still leering at her.

"What. Did. You. Just. Say," she bit out, trying not to freeze him where he stood. Though the idea _was_ tempting.

He smirked, dark hair shimmering in the light of the setting sun. "I said I've heard you can get a water tribe girl for less than a head of cabbage."

Seething, Katara changed her mind about freezing him. She raised her hands to shoot an icy jet of water at him, but then she had a better thought.

She looked up at him and smiled sweetly. "Is that so?"

Looking confused at her sudden mood change, he nodded. "Um…"

She started walking the last few feet between them, being sure to put a subtle sway in her steps. "Well, I don't know about that, but I _do_ know something you can get for free."

The young man's bright eyes widened as he took in her sultry gaze. When she reached him, she had left only a few inches between them, and she allowed him to lean towards her. Just before he kissed her, she slipped a hand between them and pressed her fingers against his lips. "Wait," she whispered. "You want to know what _I've _heard?"

The boy made an unrecognizable noise that Katara decided was a yes. She dropped her hand.

In a low, seductive voice, she murmured, "I've heard that Earth Kingdom boys…" she paused, noticing that his eyes weren't focused. Then she continued, in the same tone. "Are cowards and wimps."

It was a full thirty seconds before her words sunk in. He straightened and scowled at her.

That was when her fist hit his nose. He screamed and covered his face with his hands. With a sunny smile, she kneed him in the groin. He fell to the ground, wailing in pain.

"Katara!!" someone whined. She whirled around.

"You're gonna get us kicked out of town!" her brother continued.

"Aww, but I like these people!" Aang said, pouting.

Katara rolled her eyes. "He provoked me."

"Hey, Princess," Toph called. "We realize that you're royally pissed at the prince, but you shouldn't take it out on innocent bystanders."

Katara glowered at the other girl. "I _told_ you—"

Suddenly Sokka burst out laughing, clutching his side and pointing at Toph. "Hahaha! I get it! Royally pissed! Hahaha!"

When he realized no one else was laughing, he stopped and stood there, blinking at them.

Somewhere a cricket chirped.

"Well, Zuko's a prince," he said. "And Toph said royally—"

It was then that the ground beneath him shook and he was thrown backwards. He got to his feet, grumbling.

"I hate it when you do that."

"I love you too," Toph replied. "So, Princess, why don't you save it for Zuko?"

Katara's eye twitched. Aang hid behind Toph.

"I am **NOT** mad at Zuko!!" Katara yelled. "And I was not attacking innocent bystanders!! That boy insulted the water tribe!!"

Toph blew her hair out of her face, unaffected by the rage. "Easy, Drama Queen. I believe you."

Aang poked his head out from behind the blind girl. "Hey, Katara, we got camp all set up. That's good, right?"

Katara blushed, realizing half the town had witnessedthe entire thing. The boy was still on the ground, glaring at her. She smiled and headed into the forest. The other three followed, Sokka still complaining about his sore butt.

Katara was in a bad mood the rest of the evening. The boys tried to stay inconspicuous. Even Appa was quiet. Momo disappeared completely, and no one saw him until the next morning. Toph, though, seemed to take pleasure in getting on Katara's nerves. Finally, Katara heatedly informed everyone that she was going down to the river and if anyone followed her, they were going to be very very sorry.

As soon as the water touched her, Katara felt soothed. It wasn't long before she was totally relaxed. But suddenly a feeling of déjà vu swept through her. The setting reminded her of another river—and she gasped as she remembered exactly which river. Memories hit her with such force that she stumbled in the water and almost lost her balance.

That night that she could still recall with an almost embarassing vividness. She could still hear his low voice saying "I'll save you from the pirates." And she could still feel her gut tightening in an immediate response. Remembering her helplessness in that situation, she scowled. That would never happen again.

It was time to move on. They had been in this forest for too long. She left the river and moved quickly towards camp, on edge. It seemed as if the very earth was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen. And when Katara walked into the clearing, she understood why everything was so silent and foreboding.

Her nightmare was standing in the middle of camp, staring at her with his golden eyes.

Her friends were nowhere in sight.


	2. Chapter 2: Thief

**Author's Note**_**:**__ I would just like to say that it is so awesome to hear people say that my story is good. For anyone who liked this and wanted more but either didn't wanna review or didn't have time to, you owe chapter two to __**chasemycars**__. It is because of her, and _only_ because of her, that I decided to keep this story going. Thank you for the encouragement! *applause sounds for chasemycars*_

_I apologize if towards the middle of this chapter it starts to drag on. I promise it'll get better._

**Disclaimer: Avatar ain't mine, sadly to say…**

**Thief**

Katara froze. After reliving the past memory, she was in no mood for a faceoff. Unfortunately, it seemed that luck held a personal grudge against her.

The boy currently sneering at her was proof of that.

"Where are my friends?" she demanded. Appa was gone. Maybe they got away.

Zuko's sneer grew. "Don't worry. You'll be with them soon enough."

So that meant he'd somehow managed to capture them.

She glared at him, not backing down. "I am so not in the mood for you. Let them go."

He laughed. "You can't be serious, peasant."

Katara snapped. Before Zuko had stopped laughing, a water whip cut across his face, taking them both by surprise. He hadn't seen it coming. She hadn't realized she'd done it. He touched his face, fingers coming away smeared with blood.

Katara's eyes widened. She'd never drawn blood before. Zuko's lips pulled back in a feral snarl, and a fireball grew in each hand. And so another fight began between fire and water.

But this time it did not end in the usual stalemate. Katara was tired an running an anger, an anger that could never match that of the banished prince. It wasn't long before she was on the defensive, and Zuko smiled cruelly when he saw she was giving out. A few more minutes and the girl stumbled. He seized the new opportunity, and Katara found herself backed against a tree, flames less than a foot away.

Gasping for breath, she knew she could not escape. Not by force, anyway. She needed a different approach. The flames danced a little closer, and sadistic triumph flickered across Zuko's face as he noticed her fear.

"Please," Katara whispered, eyes wide and frightened.

There was no reply. There wasn't even an indication that he'd heard her. But the flames stopped moving, and for that, Katara was grateful.

"Please," she pleaded. "Let me go."

The fire abruptly disappeared. When Katara looked up at his face, she realized she'd shocked him. "Let you go?!" he said incredulously. Another flame suddenly appeared, making Katara flinch. He laughed viciously. "Why in Agni's name would I do that?"

"Because," she whispered. "It's Aang you want. No one wants me."

He stared at her. "So you think I'm just going to let you go."

"Please," she begged again, tears forming in her eyes. "I'm of no use to anyone."

"What kind of fool do you take me for?" he demanded. "I know you. You'll try to rescue your little friends," he finished with a sneer.

"If I were dumb enough to singlehandedly try to rescue them, _after_ you'd been gracious enough to let me go free, I think I deserve to be caught."

"Hmm. You're right," he replied thoughtfully.

There was a pause. Katara hoped desperately that he had the tiny remnants of a heart.

"Where will you go?" he asked curiously.

The question threw her off-track. "I…I guess I'll just go back home."

He nodded, as if in agreement. The flames in his hand had been put out once again. He was silent, and she was scared to speak for fear that he would capture her.

Finally his gaze met hers. "How do I know you won't try to save your friends?" he asked suspiciously. She supposed he didn't believe she would really stay away.

"I don't think there's much chance that I could succeed," she said bitterly.

Katara didn't like the way the prince was looking at her. He reminded her of a cobra just before it struck. "But how can I be sure you won't try?" Zuko persisted.

"It's called trust! Or do you want me to write it in blood?" she cried, tired of playing games.

"I think we can avoid that," he said, stepping close. Her breath caught in her throat and her heart began to race. Was he going to kill her?

Katara looked up with fear-filled eyes. She hadn't expected this.

His fierce golden eyes stared back, and he slowly raised a hand to rest on the trunk next to her neck. Katara trembled, more scared than she'd ever been in her life.

"Are you going to kill me?" she whispered, voice shaking.

Zuko looked aback, then his usual expression masked his face. "No," he growled. "I'm letting you go." With a swift motion, his hand descended, pulling her mother's necklace off and stepping back.

Katara started to protest, but instead bowed in head in submission. Zuko didn't see the fire flash in her eyes.

"Once my father has the Avatar, I will release your brother and give him this. If you attempt a rescue, I will destroy it."

Katara nodded, but kept her head down so he would not see the triumph in her eyes.

Zuko took another step back. "Goodbye. With luck, we will never meet again."

Without waiting for a reply, he turned and walked away. She waited until he was almost completely across the clearing.

"Zuko."

He stopped, but didn't turn around. "What?"

"Thank you," she said, just loud enough for him to hear. He stiffened, then walked away without saying anything. Katara smiled to herself. He had fallen for it! For a few minutes, she didn't think it would work. She couldn't believe that she had managed to beg and act so scared without gagging—or worse, laughing hysterically. She waited until she was sure the prince was gone, then packed everyone's belongings and hid them where they could come back later to retrieve them. For her journey, she could not carry unnecessary weight. Then she set off after a certain black-haired young man. This was the second time he had stolen her necklace. This time he would pay.

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It wasn't long before the ominous fleet of Fire Nation ships came into view. Granted, it was a very small fleet—only three ships, but that was three ships that Katara was going up against alone. Her words to Zuko flashed through her mind, and she smiled grimly. It _was_ dumb to singlehandedly attempt a rescue. Katara was hoping no one would think she'd try. That way she'd have surprise on her side.

She stayed in the shadows, waiting and watching. She wasn't going to dash in like Sokka would. This mission required stealth and more importantly, brains. She was essentially voluntarily walking into the dragon's lair. If the dragon woke up, she was toast. Literally.

The moon was high when the ships were finally quiet. The only sign of life were the sleeping guards by the ramps. Katara grinned; they were making this so much easier. She slipped past them quickly, so silent that there wasn't even a break in their snoring. She was headed to the hold when a noise stopped her and she spun around, ready to fight. She relaxed when she realized it was just Appa. The poor bison was tied in crazy knots. He gave her another greeting, louder than the first.

Afraid that someone would hear, she decided to free him first. "Appa, you've got to be quiet," she murmured, hoping that for once the bison would listen to her as he did Aang. To her delight, the beast stayed silent while she worked on the bonds that held him. "Okay, now wait here while I go get Aang."

Relieved that he seemed to be obeying her, she set off once more towards the hold, knowing that would be where the prisoners were kept. Within minutes she found her friends. There was no guard in sight. Zuko must have been confident that his prisoners wouldn't be going anywhere. She almost laughed aloud when she noticed the keys across from their cell, just heavy enough that Aang wouldn't be able to airbend them. Arrogant jerk.

The Gaang was soon free and climbing upon Appa, who seemed eager to leave the ship. Katara hesitated, thinking of her mother's necklace. Then, making a sudden decision, she stepped away from the bison. Her friends looked at her, obviously confused.

"Katara? What is it?" Aang asked her.

"Go back to the camp. Your things are in the big tree. I'll meet you there. I have to get something first," she said, fingers absentmindedly resting on her bare throat.

Sokka gasped theatrically. "The nerve of that guy! He took mom's necklace!"

"Again?" Aang asked.

"He's obsessed with it!" Sokka exclaimed.

"Sokka! Shut up!" Katara hissed. "Do you want to be caught again?"

"Can we leave?" Toph said in a bored tone. "The sooner we leave, the sooner I can see again."

"Yes, go on," Katara replied. "I'll just be a minute."

As soon as she convinced Aang and Sokka that she could do it on her own—after all, it was just a necklace, they left. Katara sighed in relief. She was glad that no one had remembered that she was currently on a ship full of firebending maniacs. Okay, well, maybe just one of them was psychotic.

When Appa was out of sight, she realized that she had no idea where Zuko might have put her necklace. The more she thought about it, the more she was aware of the fact that this was a wild goose chase. Then it came to her in a flash: it was probably in his room. Groaning inwardly, she started walking in the general direction of the cabins, having no idea which one might be Zuko's. She'd probably have to peek in every single door. As fate would have it, the fourth door she looked in was definitely the prince's. no other room could possibly so fancy. Besides, her necklace was lying on a table next to the bed.

Heart pounding, she slipped into the room, terrified that the prince would wake up. It seemed dead silent, and she thought that the entire ship must be able to hear her heartbeat. It took her less than a minute to make her way to the bedside, though it felt to her like an hour.

Zuko looked nicer when he was sleeping. The usual anger was gone, and he looked almost peaceful. Katara could see where he might be considered attractive—if he weren't Fire Nation. She scowled as she realized she was having friendly thoughts towards the enemy.

It was definitely time to get off this ship. She was having crazy thoughts.

But just as her fingers wrapped around the smooth blue stone, a hand reached out and grasped her wrist. Katara squealed and tried to jump back, only to find her assailant's grip was unbreakable.

"What do you think you're doing?" Zuko growled.

"Taking back what's mine!" she shot back, still struggling.

"I thought I said I'd destroy that if you tried to free the Avatar," he told her, gripping her wrist tighter. Suddenly Katara's feet flew out from under her and she fell forward, landing on the prince. She shrieked and scrambled off the bed. He'd been so surprised he'd released her arm.

While he was trying to get his breath back, she made a beeline for the door, clutching her mother's necklace. He caught her just as she jerked it open. He slammed it shut and spun her around, breathing like a mad bull. She glared right back, not scared in the least—and not pretending to be.

Realization hit him. "It was all an act."

"You think?" she grumbled, trying to slide around him. He was having no such thing. He braced his arms against the door, effectively trapping her.

"You're not getting away this time. You're going to join your friends in the hold."

Katara grinned at him. "Okay."

He looked at her as if she'd gone mad. Then suddenly he cursed. "You already freed them!"

"You're not as dumb as you look," she said sweetly. His expression was murderous as he pushed her against the door, hands on her shoulders. Katara knew there would be bruises there.

"Do you realize how long I've been chasing the Avatar?!"

"No, I have no idea," she snarled sarcastically.

He growled again, faces inches from hers. "You will pay for this."

"No," she countered hotly. "You're the one paying. For taking my mother's necklace."

His eyes were full of fire as he glared at her. Without warning he bent forward and pressed his lips to hers in a angry, fiery kiss. Katara froze, not expecting this and not knowing what to do. Then she opened her water flask and used the contents to throw him against the opposite wall.

As soon as she was released, she ran out the room and fairly flew off the ship. She didn't stop running even as she reached the clearing where the rest of the Gaang was. She knew Zuko would be after them, and he wouldn't be in a merciful mood.

"We have to go. Now," she gasped, and for once, no one argued.


	3. Chapter 3: Chase

**Author's Note**_**:**__ First, I would like to point out that I did not mean for Zuko to get a little OOC in the last chapter. It just sort of happened, and I couldn't think of a better way to write the scene. But just so you know, he didn't think about it; he just did it before it even registered in his mind that he was kissing his enemy. And if I get them OOC anymore, I am very sorry. I haven't been watching any Avatar lately, and I've been watching/reading lots more Harry Potter and Twilight, so I'm feeling like me and my Avatar friends are a little off in our relationship right now. But I don't want any of ya'll to have to wait until I get a chance to watch Avatar again, so I'm just trying to go off memory. To __**xyzisme: **__ thanks for the review! And thank you for the advice; I will keep it slow. I'm glad you like the story, though!_

**Disclaimer: If I owned Avatar, I would so NOT be writing fanfics about it…**

**Chase**

**(Zuko's POV)**

Zuko snarled at the unsuspecting soldier who had unwittingly came to ask what was wrong.

A water pitcher followed the man's hasty retreat and smashed against the door. When he was alone once again, Zuko continued pacing his room, trying to relieve his frustration. A turmoil of emotions tumbled through him—and had, in fact, been plaguing him for the last ten minutes. Confusion and anger were the primary irritants. Anger that the Avatar had escaped yet again. Anger that the water peasant had tricked him. And confusion at his action.

_He had _**kissed**_ her!!!_ What had come over him?! He had _kissed_ a peasant—he, a prince (granted, an exiled prince, but still, royal blood ran in his veins)! It didn't make any sense! He didn't find the girl at all attractive—and even if he, by some twisted humor of Agni, _did_ find her worthy of a prince's amorous attentions, they were sworn enemies. Hatred was the only thing between them. His pacing intensified, and unbeknownst to him, his fingertips were slightly smoking.

A knock came on the door.

"_Go away!!_"

Iroh poked his head in the room. "Prince Zuko, what is wrong?" he asked in his gravelly voice.

"Nothing!" Zuko growled.

Iroh raised an eyebrow, taking in the fierce expresion and smoking fingers. "Of course. In that case, would you quit trying to melt the ship? I can feel the heat from the end of the corridor."

Zuko opened his mouth to reply, no doubt with rude and petty words, but a soldier appeared in the doorway behind Iroh.

"They've been spotted, Your Highness," he stammered.

Zuko froze. "Follow them. Don't let them out of sight," he ordered.

"Yes, Sir," the man said, looking relieved. He hurried away.

Zuko noticed Iroh's gaze on the bedside table.

"I wonder," the Dragon said curiously, "just how the Avatar managed to escape."

"It doesn't matter how," Zuko grumbled sullenly.

"But there was no way he—"

"I don't want to talk about it!" Zuko interrupted.

"Very well," Iroh relented, a twinkle in his wise eyes. He turned to leave, and Zuko thought he saw a grin on his uncle's face. As Iroh passed through the door, he spoke, almost to himself. "I wonder what happened to that beautiful blue stone…"

This time Zuko was positive—Iroh was chuckling. He glared at the retreating back of the old man and went above deck to prepare for the recapture of Avatar.

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**(Katara's POV)**

"Katara!"

The girl in question jumped, then glared at her brother. "What?!"

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she replied bluntly.

"Liar," Toph accused.

"I thought you couldn't tell on Appa!" Katara exclaimed.

"I can't. I listened to your voice."

"Oh."

"So what's wrong?" Aang asked from Appa's head.

"What makes you think I'm not okay?" she asked stubbornly. Sokka rolled his eyes.

"Uh, maybe because you've been staring at nothing and touching your lips for the last five minutes!" he paused. "Blech! You're not getting airsick, are you?"

"Ew! No! I'm fine!"

"Well, why did Sokka have to yell at you to get your attention?" Toph asked.

"I…I was just thinking," Katara muttered.

"About what?" Aang asked in interest.

Katara avoided their gazes. "About…about that fireball headed this way!" she yelled suddenly.

Indeed, there was the Fire Nation ships behind them, and one had just launched a fiery missile at them. Aang leapt to the back of Appa and forced it back with a strong wind. It landed harmlessly far behind the ships. Sokka moaned in disappointment.

"Just once! Can't you hit him just once?"

Aang grinned and went back to Appa's head. Katara ignored the following banter, instead focusing on the dark ships below them. As she watched, all three ships began preparing another launch.

"Um, Aang?" she called. "We might want to go faster!"

"Appa's flying as fast as he can!"

Sokka came to sit next to Katara. "AHHHHHH!!!!"

Aang immediately jumped to the back again. "Whoa!!!"

_**"WHAT?!**_" Toph yelled, causing Momo to hide under their packs.

"We're in trouble," Katara explained. "There's three Fire Nation ships firing at us."

"Sokka, guide Appa!" Aang said, raising his voice to be heard over the sudden roar Toph emitted. He then focused entirely on blocking the fireballs.

Toph was clearly unhappy. "Haven't I _told _you we should keep our feet on the nice, sturdy, dependable ground!"

Appa suddenly tilted to the side, making Toph shriek and grip the nearest thing in reach, which happened to be Momo (who had at that moment unfortunately decided to venture out from under their packs.) Toph turned ghostly pale, then bloodred.

"SOKKA!!!"

"What? I didn't make him do that!"

Katara ignored Toph's grumbling. Aang was having trouble defending their "Ship." He wasn't going to be able to keep this up, and Appa was probably going to tire soon. Suddenly she had an idea.

"Sokka!" she said, running up to him, not realizing she had interrupted Toph mid-sentence.

"What?!" he yelled, eyes bugging. "Are you going to scream at me too?"

"Turn Appa around and get him closer to the water," she ordered.

**"WHAT?!"** Sokka and Toph yelled in unison.

"Just do it!"

"No! Are you _crazy?!"_ her brother shrieked. "That's called suicide!"

"Do it, or I'm never cooking again," she threatened.

"But Katara! They're throwing _**FIRE**_ at us!"

"Sokka, listen to her. I am not eating anything _you_ cook," Toph said flatly.

"But…it's _**fire**_," he whined.

"If you don't listen, I will pelt you with as much rock as I can find when we land."

Sokka looked as if he was going to argue more, but apparently the thought of cooking his own food was scarier than facing alomost certain death.

As soon as Sokka started the descent, Aang lost concentration.

"What are you _doing?!"_

"Trust me!" Katara replied. Aang yelled in surprise when he realized just what they were doing.

"Are you _crazy?!"_ he asked, voice an almost perfect echo of Sokka's.

"_No_, I am _**not**_ crazy! Now be quiet and get over there," she replied shortly, pointing to the other side of Appa. Aang sighed, looking doubtful, but moved to stand behind Sokka. He hadn't argued near as much as the other boy had. Of course, he probably understood what she had in mind.

"Just so you know, I think this is a _really bad_ idea!" Sokka informed them.

"Thank you, Sokka. Later, you can say 'I told you so.' If this doesn't work I'll remember that you were against this."

"If this doesn't work we'll be dead!!!" he screeched.

Toph clamped her hands over her ears. "Easy on the decibels! You sound like a girl."

"Yeah, well, you'd be freaking if you could see!"

**"SHUT UP!!!"** Aang and Katara yelled. Surprisingly, the other two listened.

_—A few seconds later—_

"A little lower, Sokka."

"Why?"

Katara sighed. "Because I can't feel the water yet. If you don't get lower, we are going to die."

When she had a good feel on the water, she told Sokka to fly them as slowly as possible towards the ships. He was visibly shaking.

"If you get us killed, I'm never speaking to you again," he said with a tremble in his voice.

"Yeah, me too, Princess" Toph said. Sokka grinned at her. As usual, he missed the sarcasm.

Meanwhile, the ships were moving ever closer.

Katara looked at Aang. "Ready?"

"Yeah?" he replied, sounding excited.

The ships fired again.

"Now!" Katara yelled as she gathered as much water as she could and shoved it all towards their enemy. At the same time, Aang tossed the fireballs back.

"Okay, Sokka, let's go now." Katara said, grinning at the look on his face.

"Okay," he answered in a small voice.


End file.
